I DUNNO thought was in heaven when I got one 7/1,nice for covering water or less effort to keep a bait up.But as one goes up in speed torque does not even a 4 pdrt when it takes a buzzbait feels like it hit a stump hard to get it moving at first double that if heavy cover.Easy come apart reels do just that come apart had a bp that with ease one could get to the innards and oil clean,then one cold winter day,fingers got ahold of wrong button,still waiting for the other half to float back up.

I don't know if a 9:1 ratio would work for me. My biggest issue when fishing moving baits is to S-L-O-W down as I tend to wind the reel quickly. Burning a spinner bait or a trap is not problem for me with a 6.3:1 reel and I have difficulty keeping a bait from skimming across the surface with a reel in the 7:1 neighborhood (OK that may be a little exaggeration). I get the point of using a fast gear to retrieve baits quickly to make another cast - but really? I'm a recreational fisherman not a tournament participant - so if I save a second or two and can make another half dozen casts in a day - that don't matter to me one bit, but I get the idea that EVERY cast makes a difference to a serious tournament guy.

The other issue, 'mule brought up is torque - I would be curious as to the power a reel in that ratio would have and would it handle a large bass in grass. Usually with speed you lose power and vise versa, is that the case with such a high ratio reel? I have no personal experience and would not be willing to drop the money to find out, when I am perfectly happy with my current stock of reels.

Each angler has specific needs but I don't think, for the style of fishing I do, I need or want that kind of speed, but I'd still love to own a ZR1 Camaro...

Nice to know some still do read my posts.
As for the torque,yes sparse grass is SMALL ISSUE, solid grass another, STUMPS OR LILLY PAD JUNGLE a big issue. While one can catch up with a running bass easier no ommph to get them moving.May be more pronounced in me due to muscle weakness in one hand,yet think it just enables me to tell the difference.\All this with a 7/1 compared to say a 6/2

Try and extended length handle, use one that comes on the Winch or the old Skeet Reese Revo. They will provide extra leverage and more than negate the difference you feel between the gear ratios. ABU also has a swept carbon fiber handle in an extended length if you are in to that.

Now I'm really confused. Would not a longer handle increase the "speed" of the reel as it relates to moving a lure through the water if the handle is turned at the same rate of rotation? Where the heck is NFE when you need him? Probably waiting for his morning Hot Pocket to heat up. My problem has always been reeling too fast and it takes conscious effort for me to slow down my retrieve on most days when fishing lures with the reel (moving baits). Plastics and such that I fish with the rod, I might be able to use a hyper drive reel to take up slack, but I would not take that as a big advantage over a 6.3 or a 7.1, which I already have, when hopping a worm or twitching a beaver. Others may find a reel in the 9's advantageous, but I don't think it would work for me.
Oh, let me repeat - TWITCHING A BEAVER is one of my FAVORITE things to do.

The longer handle does not change the I.P.T. of the reel, it only provides for more leverage. One rotation of a longer handle is no different than one rotation of a shorter one.
I.P.T. is the result of spool diameter and gear ratio.

Ok, I get that. It's later in the day and I've had two cups of coffee so I think my cognitive abilities may be functioning more normally... or not. Spool rotation is determined at the spool shaft not the reel handle.

The longer wider handle while a fulcrum and effects only the ease one turns that handle is in effect like a low gear ratio being larger and slower to make each revolution, thus ease and torque,here it makes no difference in speed as that is determined by spool and gr as Tavery said.

Ok, I get that. It's later in the day and I've had two cups of coffee so I think my cognitive abilities may be functioning more normally... or not. Spool rotation is determined at the spool shaft not the reel handle.

You got it, while a longer handle may take a fraction of a sec longer to make a full rotation it has no practical effect on most fishing. It's the leverage that makes the longer handle more enjoyable to fish in reels that have a high gear ratio.

The longer wider handle while a fulcrum and effects only the ease one turns that handle is in effect like a low gear ratio being larger and slower to make each revolution, thus ease and torque,here it makes no difference in speed as that is determined by spool and gr as Tavery said.

Mule, I think the time it takes to make a complete revolution makes very little difference in this case. It is much more the amount of leverage you can apply to the crankshaft with the increased length of the handle.

Think about it this way. Have you ever had a nut that was really stuck on a threaded shaft of bolt. If you used a regular boxed end wrench to try and break it loose you may have found it impossible, but add about a 12 to 20 inch cheater pipe to increase the length of that wrench and you can probably move it with ease. This is the same thing we are doing with the increased length of the handle.

I agree wholeheartedly fulcrum-leverage,like adding a cheater bar over that boxed in wrench and while it might take longer to make one turn will make no difference in line retrieval,just make it easier-merry xmas.

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